Hosive

in the book series, not so big house, the key to getting the most out of a small space are niches. even in big homes, what makes a home “homey” are the small little places that feel cozy and safe. where memories are made. so good architects, builders and home makers build little spots into a house or apt to make the space memorable and alive. i’ve been blessed to live in a few places with little nooks and spots that radiate with life.

we bought one of the not so big house books because we were moving from a 2400 sq/ft md house into a 1100 sq/ft nyc apartment. but it turns out the not so big homes in the not so big house books were not so not-so-big. they were huge places! we have different definitions of not so big house!

in these features, i’ll detail mundane little spots around our apartment…..the spots where we live…and life is made.

we refer to our duck bathroom frequently in conversation…and people who have not visited ask…what are you talking about? what is a duck bathroom? you’ll have to come on in and see.

we have 2 full baths we have in our ny apt. one in the hallway and another one in the master bedroom. the duck one is the former and you’ll know you’ve arrived when you see the door marked with a duck.

this is our duck bathroom. its self explanatory. seeing is believing.

we had a duck bathroom in maryland and packed all the goodness in a box hoping to import the whole vibe. not sure if we would have one or two bathrooms…it is the city after all. when we were looking at apartments, we found one that we liked on broadway on the upper west side…and they had a duck bathroom too and we thought it was destiny. it was not. we were outbid.

but when we settled into our magical home, we were pleased that we could break out the ducks.

in maryland, we had 2 and a half baths….so theresa asked me what i thought of having a theme for one of the bathrooms. she picked ducks…a surprise for me since i thought she would pick something like grey. ducks seemed so cheery and contrary to her demeanor. not having an opinion, i acquiesced.

it starts with the basics.  soap dispenser. toothbrush holder. cup. and then some not so basics…that’s a big old candle holder and some duck key toppers converted into q tip toppers.

a duck nightlight….duck towels…duck tissue dispenser….and some rubber duckies!

our duck decor began with a bridal shower…her family and friends bought up a bunch of the stuff off our registry.  wedding gifts brought another wave.  later, we filled in the gaps…..

then it started happening….when people know you like stuff, they buy stuff for you. and being in ministry this long, i’ve reached this strange stage where people are reciprocating ministry with generosity. people want to give us things…things that they hope we love. we try to proudly display their love.

we are much too young for this stage but thoroughly humbled by it.

our first year in ny, for an anniversary gift, i got theresa this piece that proudly hangs on our wall. its a stamp defining piece for the room.

there are lots of little duckie details everywhere from the trash can to the bath mat to the shower curtain to the hooks on the curtain……ken calls our place ducks r us.

even in hidden spots and nooks…..next to the toilet and behind the curtain in the shower……

we don’t use the brush btw. its purely decorative.

finally, for this go around, inside the medicine cabinet are the knick knacks, mixed bag items and delicate dainties that won’t survive out in the open. but are safe here and line the insides. many of these are gifts…the aforementioned love.

thanks for visiting our duck bathroom…..it was the inspiration for steph’s guide to living with the tsangs…proudly displayed just outside in the adjacent towel cabinet.

as for what theme our second bathroom features…can you guess? we’ll answer some other time.